Washington - US Says No Conference On Nuke-Free Mideast For Now

Washington - The U.S. says a proposed conference on banning nuclear weapons in the Middle East cannot be convened at this point because of current conditions in the region.

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in a statement released Friday that the U.S. will continue to work to create conditions that could result in a successful conference. But she cited political turmoil in the region and Iran’s defiant stance on nonproliferation.

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She says the U.S. supports the goal of a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction. But she said such a conference should discuss a broad agenda of regional security and have some sort of consensus among the nations in the region on how to approach the conference.

The Associated Press reported earlier this month that the meeting, planned for Helsinki, Finland, before the end of the year had been called off. A diplomat, who demanded anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter ahead of a public announcement of the cancellation, said Israel had decided not to attend. Key sponsors had said that the meeting was possible only if all countries, especially Israel, would participate.

Israel declined to participate because of positions taken by Arab countries, the diplomat said.

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Nov 25, 2012 at 06:22 AMUpset Says:

One of the biggest deterents against the Arabs Israel has is its nuclear aresenal. Israel cannot be nuclear-free and therefore cannot attend such a conference. This is yet another attempt to undermine Israel and its right to self-defence. The world is trying to neutralize Israel from many different angles. We must be very alert and see through these smoke-screens.